Car-brake



(No Model.)

R. C. WRIGHT. GAR BRAKE.

No. 484,486. Patented 001;. 18, 1892.

EQQ W946,

12623670 0. Why ht UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

REZIN CLAYBORNE WVRIGHT, OF COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO.

CAR-BRAKE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 484,486, dated October 18, 1892.

Application filed April 30, 1892.

To aZZ whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, REZIN CLAYBORNE WRIGHT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Colorado Springs, in the county of El Paso and State of Colorado,have invented a new and useful Brake, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to car-brakes; and it has for its object to provide certain improvements in car-brakes of that character in which the brakes, instead of being applied to the wheels, are applied directly to the rails.

It is the main object of the present invention to provide an improved construction whereby a powerful leverage is exerted upon the shoes, and a brake in which the rocking motion of the cars is readily yielded to either while the brakes are on or off.

With these and many other objects in view, which will appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the sameconsists in the novel construction, combination, and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated, and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of the bottom of a car-body having my improved brakes secured thereto. Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse sectional view through the opposite brakes applied to the rails. Fig. 3 is a' detail in perspective of the depending brake-housing or guide frame. Fig. 4 is a similar View of the sliding shoeframe.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, A represents the body of a car supported upon .the ordinary wheeltrucks B, located near each end thereof. Secured to the under side of the car-body and depending centrally between the ends trucks on opposite sides of the car are the opposite U shaped guide frames or housings C. The said guide-frames C comprise the opposite vertical portions 0, connected at their lower ends by the parallel strips 0, secured at their ends to the lower ends and opposite sides of the vertical portion c, and said U-shaped guide-frames are securely braced to the car-body by the brace rods D, connected therewith, and suitable points of attachment. The said guide-frames C depend to a suitable distance above the rails of the track, and instead of being located between the trucks may be located at Serial No. 431,284. (No model.)

the ends of the car in front of the trucks, if found desirable or advisable. Secured to opposite sides of the depending side portions 0 of said U-shaped frames and projecting inwardly are the opposite pairs of guide-lugs E, between which slide the opposite arms of the U-shaped shoe-frames F. The opposite arms of the U shaped shoe-frames F slide between the parallel strips 0' of said guide-frames and work against the inner edges of the side portions 0 within said frames and between said guide-lugs, thus being securely housed and guided in their up-and-down movements within said guide-frames to force the elongated shoes G upon the .rails or lift the same therefrom. The shoes G are of substantially the same length as the lower strips of said guideframes and are provided with the top grooves g, which receive the lower ends of the U- shaped shoe-frames, to which the said shoes are securely and removably attached by means of the securing pins or keys g.

The shoes G may be made of any suitable material adapted for use in braking cars and are controlled, together with the slidingframes to which they are connected, by means of the jointed or toggle levers H. The said levers H are connected to each other at one end by the knuckle-joints h, and the lower levers are connected at their other ends centrally to the U-shaped shoe-frames by means of the connecting-links I, pivotally connected to the lower levers and said U-shaped shoe-frames, while the upper levers H are pivotally connected at their other upper ends in the adjusting-brackets J. The said adj usting-brackets J are pivoted at one end at j beneath the car-body, and are provided at their other ends with the adjusting-slotsj, through which pass the adj usting-screws K, engaging the timbers of the car-body and providing means for moving one end of said brackets, so as to adjust said toggle-levers according to the amount of leverage required to throw the opposite shoes upon the rails of the track.

Secured to each of the upper levers H, adjacent to their pivotal or knuckle connection with the lower levers, are the opposite retractile springs L, connected at their other ends to a suitable point of attachment, so as to northe horizontal equalizing-barN to slide therethe guide-frames and shoes from the rails. Connected also to the said upper levers H at the same point of connection as the springs are the opposite connecting wires or rods M, the other ends of which are connected to the opposite ends of the sliding horizontal equalizing-bar N. The said equalizing-bar N'iS provided near each end with the eyes a, working over the depending-stirrups 0, depending from the bottom of the car and supporting on. Centrally secured to said bar N is the operating-chain P, which is controlled by means of the ordinary hand or air brake-operating mechanism, so as to straighten out the toggle-levers to apply the brakes-when necessary.

ItwilL bereadily seen that by the use of j guide-frames over the, rail, adjusting brackthe: equalizing-bar the brakes while being adapted to be powerfully applied to therails atthesametiime will not cramp thezcar- As thecar rocks, the equalizing banpull ing from tl1e2outenend's'to. the levers and thenfrom the centerthereot totheoperating mechanism,allowsthetensionon each brake; to be eqzuahandalso by being supported to= slide beneathl thecar the levers on one side will straighten upiwhile those on the-oppositeside will drop backand yield to themotion of the carand therefore give; the same free play while: the; brakes are being applied.

The construction and operation of the herein described brakeiare'now thought tobe apparent.

Having. thusdescribed my invention, what I- claim, and; desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1-.. In a car-brake,a dependinggnide-frame projecting, from the car-body over the rail, a

shoe-carrying frame sliding within said guidea frame over the rail, and adjustable togglelevers connected with said sliding frameand suitable operating mechanism, substantially as set forth;

2. In a car-brake, a. braced depending U.-

shaped guide-frame, a U-shaped shoe-frame lugs, U-shaped shoe-frames sliding within *said guide-frames and between said guidelugs, elongated brake-shoes removably connected with said sh0e-frames,.j0inted levers pivotally connected" with said shoe-frames and, adjustably to the body of the car, and

suitable operating mechanism, substantially as set forth.

4:. Ina car-brake, depending guide-frames, shoe-carrying frames sliding; withinsaid ets pivot-ally connected at one end. to thecarbody above said firamesand. radially adj ustable from such points 06 pivot, toggle-levers connected with said sliding frames. and said adjustable.bnacketaand suitable operating mechanism, substantially-as set forth..

5. In. a car bralte depending.guide-frames, shoe-carrying frames. sliding withinsaid guide-frames. over the rail's,,toggle-levers connected with. said sliding frames and the body of the ear, retractilesprings connected. with said levers atalsuitable point ofattachment for-normally breaking thehingeof the levers to raise the shoe-frames,oppositestirnups depending from the car-body, an.eq.ualizing- .leversliding in said stirrups, connectingrods or'wiresconnected toeach endof said bar and to said toggle-levers, and an operatingchainconnected centrally to said bar, substantially as set forth.

In testimony that I. claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto-aflixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

REZIN CLAYBORNE WRIGHT.

Witnesses:

E. G. PERKINS, .I. A. WRIGHT. 

